LauraReiley

Food Critic

I’ve been the Tampa Bay Times food critic since 2007 and I wrote for the San Francisco Chronicle and Baltimore Sun before that. I’ve always thought food is a compelling lens because it elicits passion in just about everyone, a central part of nearly every human endeavor (try celebrating a holiday, grieving or dating without it). There is nothing I don’t eat. I dine out nearly 200 times each year (and get food poisoning at least a few times). As more people become interested in the provenance of their food and as our food system becomes more byzantine and opaque, I think there are very few more vital journalism beats. In 2017, I was a James Beard and Pulitzer finalist.